Rotary internal combustion engine



March 6, 1956 Fil$d April 27, 1953 G. L. GASKELL ROTARY INTERNALCOMBUSTION ENGINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 47 INVENTOR.

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March 6, 1956 5. L. GASKELL ROTARY INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE 3Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 27, 1953 INVENTOR. -koeae 1.. GZSKELL,

March 6, 1956 L GASKELL 2,737,161

ROTARY INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE I 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 EiHAUST %wauz FiledApril 27, 1953 INTAK 49 50 QJMPRESS iON Attorne United States PatentROTARY INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE George L. Gaskell, Alhambra, Calif.

Application April 27, 1953, Serial No. 351,264

4 Claims. (Cl. 123-11) This invention relates to rotary internalcombustion engines, and more particularly to a rotary internalcombustion engine in which a plurality of pairs of piston members, onthe periphery of the two disc-like members, within a suitable case orhousing, are made to perform the four cycles of intake, compression,explosion and exhaust between the piston elements of each pair, as theyare moved around the circle of their travel.

In other words, as said discs are revolved flatwise together, the pairsof piston elements on their peripheries are made to cooperate togetherin pairs, to simultaneously perform the four cycles of an internalcombustion engine. For example: as piston 1 is locked and piston 2 ismoved away from piston 1 a predetermined distance, the intake iseffected. As said piston 1 is released and moved toward piston 2, thecompression is effected, whereupon the ignition takes place and piston 2is forced forwardly in the power stroke, piston 1 being locked. Piston 1is released and moved to piston 2, and exhaust is eifected. Piston 1 isagain locked while piston 2 is moved forward to effect another intake,and the operation or cycle is repeated. The three pairs of pistonsfunction simultaneously so that there are three intakes taking place atonce, three compressions, three explosions and three exhausts. Themovements of the pistons and the locking of the pistons successively andintermittently being timed and controlled by gear and cam mechanisms, sothat said pistons are moved step by step successively in the mannerindicated.

Among the salient objects of the invention are:

To provide a rotary internal combustion engine in which there are aplurality of pairs of pistons, or piston elements, the pistons of eachpair functioning simultaneously, in the same manner, to accomplish thefour cycles of an internal combustion engine;

To provide in such an engine rotary pistons on the peripheries ofsupporting discs or members, on a central shaft, thus giving greaterleverage of power to the drive shaft;

To provide in such an engine piston elements having oil grooves aroundtheir edges to seal the space between the edges of the pistons and thechamber wall;

To provide piston elements or members as referred to having a keystoneform of fit between the combustion chamber wall and the edges of thepistons, but narrower at the outer end and wider at the inner ends,whereby wear is taken up or compensated for by the outward movement ofthe piston elements;

To provide in a rotary combustion engine of the character referred to,having plural pairs of pistons to function together, a plurality ofspark plugs, with timing mechanism for controlling the sparkssimultaneously as the compressions are completed, with proper intake andexhaust ports for supplying the fuel to each pair of pistons and openingthe necessary exhausts therefor in the proper functioning of the enginein the manner hereinbefore indicated;

To provide in such an engine, an air cooling fan and Patented Mar. 6,1956 "ice system and thus to thus greatly simplify the cooling means forsuch engine;

To provide a simplified construction and arrangement and in which thestarter is placed on top of the engine, rather than down under themechanism where it is dithcult to get at;

To provide in such an engine a construction which is small and compact,light in weight, and in which a gear mechanism is so connected and timedthat it will move the piston elements intermittently in the properfunctioning, with means for automatically locking said piston elementssuccessively and intermittently in a manner to accomplish the successivefunctions of intake, compression, explosion and exhaust, as beforereferred to; and

In general, to provide a new and useful rotary internal combustionengine in which three intakes are simultaneously accomplished, threecompressions, three explosions and three exhausts, and whereby there canbe no stalling of the engine, as frequently occurs in present types ofengines.

In order to explain my invention more fully, I have shown on theaccompanying three sheets of drawings one embodiment thereof, which Iwill now describe:

Figure l is a front elevation of an engine embodying my invention, asseen from the position of the line 1, on Fig. 2;

Figure 2 isa vertical sectional view therethrough on the line 2-2 onFig. 1;

Figure 3 is a rear end view as seen from the position of line 3, on Fig.2;

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional view thereof taken on line 4-4 on Fig.2;

Figure 5 is a vertical sectional view taken on line 55 on Figure 2;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of one of the piston elements, detachedfrom the periphery of the disc or member on which said pistons aremounted;

Figure 7 is a diagrammatic view, showing three pairs of pistons, withfour sections through the chamber to indicate the four differentfunctions of intake, compression, explosion and exhaust; and

Figure 8 is a fragmentary sectional view, enlarged, taken on line 88 onFig. 5, showing the piston element connected with one disc, andoverriding the adjacent disc, portions of two disc members being shownin section.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, my rotary internal combustionengine as here shown for explanatory purposes, includes a suitable caseor housing of cylindrical form, designated 10, with two end members orheads, as 11 and 12, and through which is shown a power shaft 13.Mounted on the left end of said shaft 13, is a fan consisting of a hubportion, designated 14, with a series of blades, as 14'. On the outerface of said fan is a plate P, having a series of concentricallyarranged openings, as P formed therein, also seen in Fig. 1.

The shaft'13 has its bearings in said end members, as at 11 and 12'. Thehub portion of said fan is secured on the end of said shaft, as by meansof a washer and nut, as 13'.

Mounted on the inner annular shoulder portion of said hub portion ofsaid fan 14 is drive pulley 15, with drive belt 16 shown in placethereon, and connected with a generator 17, for driving the same, asseen in Fig. l.

The end member or head 11 is shown with a chamber 18 formed therein andconnected with which, at its outer end, is a carbureter 19, as indicatedin Figs. 1 and 2, and at its inner end said chamber 18 communicates withan annular chamber 20, formed in a disc-like member 21, said chamber 20forming an intake and feed with a discharge port, as 22 into thecombustion chambers, as said piston elements are moved around theircourse of travel,

On each of said discs, around its periphery, are three 2' pistonelements, or pistons, those on disc 23 being designated 25, and those ondisc 24 being designated 26. Thus there are three pistons 25 and threepistons 26 in the present showing, the pistons of each pair cooperatingtogether in the performance of the four cycles of an internalcornbustion engine, and all three pairs operate simultaneously in theoperation of said engine. 7

Each piston consists of an angle body, as 26, Fig. 6, having its longerside extended down into a notch or recess formed in the disc to receiveit in the edge of its disc, while its shorter portion extends across theperiphery of the other or adjacent disc. This will be understood fromthe enlarged view in Fig. 8. In this view, two fragmentary portions oftwo discs 23 and 24 are shown in section. The piston element here shownis designated 26, with its longer portion 26' extended down into arecess formed in the edge or periphery of disc 24. A small coiledspring, as 28, is seated in the bottom of the recess in which saidpiston portion is extended, and normally presses outwardly on saidpiston 26. Between the outer portion of the piston 26, and the peripheryof the adjacent disc 23, as here shown, is a floating sealing element29, pressing inwardly on the periphery or edge of the disc 23, as shown,a small spring 28 operating between the piston extension and saidsealing element, as seen in Fig. 8. This arrangement is the same foreach of the pistons.

The functioning of the pairs of pistons, as described in the secondparagraph of page 1 of this specification, is indicated in the fourdifferent parts of Fig. 7. The pistons in these views are given theirregular numbers, 25 and 26, but are also given the numbers 1 and 2 insaid paragraph to facilitate the description of the operation. Thenumeral 1 is applied to piston 26, and the numeral 2 is applied topiston 25, in the first circle portion of Fig. 7, and the operation willnow be read as follows: Piston 26 is locked and piston 25 is moved awayfrom piston 26 a predetermined distance, to effect the intake. As saidpiston 26 is released and moved toward piston 25, the compression iseffected, whereupon the ignition takes place and piston 25 is forcedforwardly in the power stroke, piston 26 being locked. Piston 25 isreleased and moved to piston 26, and exhaust is effected. Piston 26 isagain locked while piston 25 is moved forward to effect another intake,and so on, all three pairs of pistons thus functioning simultaneously.

An intermediate body or bearing member, as 30, is shown on said shaft13, adjacent the disc 24, said bearing member having formed in the outerportion exhaust passageways, as 31, 31, with exhaust pipe connectionstherefor, as at 31', 31', as shown in section in Fig. 2, and all threeof which are shown in section in Fig. 4, and in elevation in Fig. 3.

Also on said shaft 13, within said intermediate bearing member 30, is aspecial cam disc, as 32, having therein a series of curved cam slots, as32", Fig. 4, said cam disc 32 having a hub portion 32'. Mounted in saidbearing member 30 are two short shafts, as 33 and 34, at opposite sidesof the shaft 13. Shaft 33 has on its outer end a small gear 33, and theoutermost end of said shaft 33, beyond its gear 33, is connected, as at33", with a shaft 35 of a distributor 35, to be driven through saidconnection.

Short shaft 34 also has mounted on its outer end a small gear 34 and theoutermost end of said shaft 34, beyond its gear 34', is connected, as at34", with a gear 36 of a gear oil pump, designated as a whole 37, Figs.2 and 3.

Mounted on the short shaft 34, is a U-shaped, or double, cam disc 38,the spaced disc portions thereof being 4 connected with a pin 39, onwhich is a spacing sleeve, as 40, Figs. 2 and 3.

Said cam disc 38 has its opposite peripheries enlarged, as indicated at33', to successively engage a roller 41, on the end of a lock lever 42,pivotally supported, as at 43, and having its upper end normally pressedoutwardly by a coiled spring 44, on a pin 45, held in a lug 46, asindicated in Fig. 4. Said lock lever 42 also has a lock-lug 42' on itsinner edge and positioned to be moved into locking engagement with theslots 32 in said cam disc 32.

An oil chamber or sump is indicated as 47 in the lower portion of thehousing, as seen in Fig. 2, with a drain plug 48, also shown.

The outer periphery of the housing members are provided with coolingfins, as 49, 49, and indicated in several of the views.

By reference to Figs. 3 and 5, I have shown three spark plugs,designated 50, 50, spaced around said housing as indicated and inposition to ignite the compressed fuel, between the piston elements ofeach pair, as they are moved together in the compression action.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, the fan is provided around its outerperiphery with a combination fly-Wheel and a ring gear, designated 51,and said ring gear is shown to be in mesh with a pinion 52, of astarter, designated 53 as a whole and seen in Fig. 1.

Mounted on the main center shaft 13, between the two small gears, 33'and 34, is a large gear 54, keyed to said shaft 13, as at 55.

At opposite sides of the housing, as seen in Fig. 1, are two supportingheads or members, as 56, 56, with integral web portions 57 to the endplate or head 12. These are for supporting engine in place.

The main shaft 13 has indicated therein and there through oilpassageways, designated 13". These oil passageways are connected withthe oil pump, designated 37, Fig. 2, in the usual manner for pumpinglubricating oil therethrough. The case or housing is filled with oil, asindicated at 47, and before referred to.

Disc 23, on which pistons 25, 25 are mounted, is keyed to shaft 13, asby key 21, Fig. 2, which also keys the chamber member 20 to said shaftto turn therewith. The other disc 24 is keyed to the hub portion 32' ofthe hub portion 32 of the cam disc 32, whereby its movement iscontrolled by said cam disc 32.

Thus I have provided an internal rotary combustion engine in which thereis a plurality of pairs of piston members operatively connected andtimed to function to form a plurality of intake chambers, a plurality ofcompression chambers, a plurality of explosion chambers and a pluralityof exhaust chambers, successively and intermittently, with each of saidfunctions being performed simultaneously, whereby, in the presentshowing, three explosions or power strokes are simultaneous, thusmitigating against the possibility of stalling and at the same timegiving greater power. In connection with such a rotary internalcombustion engine, there is also provided the usual generator,distributor, spark plugs, and starter to perform their usual functions.

It is submitted that the basic novelty in this engine is the provisionin a cylindrical combustion engine, of the pairs of piston membersarranged and supported substantially as illustrated in the drawingsforming a part of this disclosure, and by reason of which it is possibleto have the plural simultaneous functions of intake, compression,explosion and exhaust, as herein described and illustrated.

I am aware that many changes can and Probably will be made in theconstruction and arrangement of the parts constituting this inventionand all within the scope of the invention, and I do not, therefore,limit the invention to the details of construction and arrangement hereshown for the purposes of explaining the invention, except as I may belimited by the hereto appended claims forming a part of thisspecification and application.

I claim:

1. in an internal combustion engine, a housing provided with an annularcombustion chamber, a pair of juXta-positioned discs within saidhousing, a shaft axially passed through said discs, each disc providedat its periphery with a keystone type piston formed to overlap theperipheries of both discs, with the base end of the keystone transverseto the peripheries of each disc and with the sides thereof tapering fromthe periphery of each disc to the outer end thereof, one of said discsbeing keyed for rotation with the shaft, a hub mounted for free rotationon the shaft, said hub being keyed to the other of said discs, a cam,means between the shaft and the cam for producing continuous rotation ofthe cam when the shaft is rotated, and a circular cam plate providedwith arcuate cam slots extending inwardly from the edge of said platesecured to the hub, said first named cam provided with means forsuccessive reception in the cam slots of the cam plate to produceintermittent rotation of the hub and the disc carried thereby.

2. The device as set forth in claim 1, and a pivoted lock lever,provided with a lug, in engagement with the edge of said cam plate forsuccessively entering each arcuate cam slot during rotation of thecircular cam plate to lock the said circular cam plate against rotationas the means on the first cam enters and leaves successive arcu ate cam'slots in the circular cam plate.

3. The device as set forth in claim 2, and means for said lever engagingthe first named cam for positively controlling rocking movement thereofin its engagement with the circular cam plate.

4. In a rotary internal combustion engine, a housing having therein anannular chamber, first and second rotatable disc members in saidchamber, concentrically adjacent each other, a shaft axially passedthrough said disc members, the first of said disc members being keyed tosaid shaft and the second thereof being turnable relative to said shaft,each disc member having on its periphery a plurality of spaced pistonelements overriding the periphery of the other disc member, a circularcam plate free to rotate on said shaft, and secured to the second discmember, said circular cam plate provided with arcuate cam slotsextending inwardly from the edge of said plate, a second cam, and meansbetween the said shaft and the second cam for positively rotating thesame during shaft rotation, said second cam provided with means adaptedto enter each arcuate cam slot in the circular cam plate in sequence toproduce intermittent rotation of the circular cam plate, and a locklever positively actuated by the second named cam during rotationthereof to lock the circular cam plate against movement when the saidmeans on said second cam is successively entering or leaving an arcuatecam slot.

7 References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,212,649 'Kirkorian Jan. 16, 1917 1,793,875 Staaf Feb. 24, 19312,608,932 Lepicard Sept. 2, 1952 2,612,878 Wilson Oct. 7, 1952 2,657,676Mallinckrodt Nov. 3, 1953

